Deloitte comments on ONS retail sales

Commenting on today’s ONS retail sales figures, Ian Geddes, head of retail at Deloitte, said:

“Today’s ONS sales data for December 2019 paints a picture of tough trading conditions for retailers in the run up to Christmas, with fourth quarter sales down on 2018. This follows a difficult year, with high levels of promotional activity.

“The lead up to Christmas saw retailers discounting much earlier and heavier than previously seen. Deloitte data revealed average discounts reached 47% by Christmas Eve, and 52.8% on Christmas day itself; 0.7% deeper than last Christmas. However, the ONS data also suggests that cautious consumers bought less.”

End

Notes to editors

About Deloitte
In this press release references to “Deloitte” are references to one or more of Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu Limited (“DTTL”) a UK private company limited by guarantee, and its network of member firms, each of which is a legally separate and independent entity.

Please see deloitte.com/about for a detailed description of the legal structure of DTTL and its member firms.

Deloitte LLP is a subsidiary of Deloitte NSE LLP, which is a member firm of DTTL, and is among the UK's leading professional services firms.

The information contained in this press release is correct at the time of going to press.

For more information, please visit www.deloitte.co.uk

Member of Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu Limited